Laparoscopes are medical optical devices which are adapted for internal visualizatinn of the abdominal areas of a patient for diagnosis, treatment and surgery. A laparoscope typically consists of a rigid housing containing a series of lenses, or a bundle of optic fibers provided with a lens at their distal end, to permit viewing of the patient's internal conditions and surgical procedures from within a patient. A viewing lens is provided at the proximal end of the laparoscope housing to permit viewing of images transmitted through the optic fibers. A video camera may also be optically coupled to the viewing lens to permit display of images on a video monitor and recording of them with a video recorder. A second bundle of fibers typically are connected to a light source and extend through the laparoscope to provide illumination to the area to be visualized. The laparoscope can be augmented by providing additional instrument channels within the laparoscope housing. These additional channels may contain, for instance, forceps, cauterizing elements for controlling bleeding, and other surgical instruments. These instruments can be controlled remotely from outside the patient and their operation is viewed through the laparoscope. This permits treatment or surgery to be performed with a minimum of invasive procedures.
Certain other types of viewing instruments have been used in visualization of other areas of the body. Such instruments have included cystoscopes and uteroscopes, hysteroscopes and arthroscopes. Laryngoscopes are surgical instruments having means for indirect illumination and visualization of the pharyngeal areas of the body. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,776,222 and 3,913,568 disclose devices for endotracheal intubation which comprise flexible or articulatable tubular probes having internal fiber optics for lighting and viewing the internal areas of the body.
Viewing instruments such as those described have generally been rigid instruments, although some flexible cystoscopes and some flexible gastroscopes have been used. Laparoscopes are typically rigid, and have a viewing field limited to the area in front of the viewing lens. It is to be appreciated that it is often very difficult to properly position even a rigid laparoscope, and it can be even more difficult with a flexible instrument. Typically the trocars established in the patient through which the laparoscope can be positioned are located only on the anterior side of the patient; therefore it is rare to obtain a complete visualization of an entire body structure. This is because the laparoscope typically permits viewing of the anterior portion of an organ, and it is difficult to look at the posterior surfaces of an organ. It is to be appreciated that it is not desirable to establish posterior trocars in a patient, and further that insertion and removal of the laparoscope is not always atraumatic, and excessive removal and excessive repositioning of a laparoscope undesirably lengthens the time required for the treatment, surgery or diagnostic procedure. Therefore visualization of posterior surfaces is not always possible. Moreover, even to obtain a partial visualization, it will be necessary to move the laparoscope, which creates a risk that it will not be possible to reestablish the initial placement of the laparoscope. The same problems apply to other optical instruments which are introduced into body cavities.